Good Leaders Podcast Episode 16 – Bevis Watts: 'I'm very conscious of what nurtures me'

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How did the leader of a local wildlife charity become the successful boss of a UK bank with €2bn in assets under management? What do beavers have to do with it? These issues and more are explored in this month’s Good Leaders podcast with Tim West in conversation with Bevis Watts, the CEO of ethical investment firm Triodos Bank UK.

Watts’ career has taken many twists and turns, leading him to roles as an environmentalist and later an ethical banker. But far from revealing an identity crisis, he explains that his journey reflects a constant focus on impact – how he could use his skills to make the biggest difference at a certain point in time. 

“I’m dubbed an environmentalist because that’s where my career started,” he says. “But I hope I’m also a broader advocate and agent of social change…That’s why I'm here, why I’m doing this job.” 

While he may seem an unlikely bank chief – “I doubt any other bank would want me now”, he confesses – Triodos UK has doubled its size, in terms of assets under management, under his watch since 2016. 

For him, being a good boss means listening to and learning from experts, and never pretending to know about things when you don’t. Making sure all of his team is involved and avoiding a hierarchical approach is also key.

“I think a CEO also spends a lot of time on fostering connection,” he adds – both within the team but also to create a community among the bank’s customers – investors and investees alike.

I’m dubbed an environmentalist because that’s where my career started. But I hope I’m also a broader advocate and agent of social change

Triodos, with its €30bn in assets under management globally (including €2bn in the UK subsidiary), is a big player in the impact investing world, but just medium-sized when it comes to mainstream banking. It can still make a big difference on how the finance world sees the role of money, according to Watts: “The most important thing we are is an innovator in how money is used.”

He adds: “We summarise it as ‘finance change, change finance’. We're trying to support all sorts of entrepreneurs in social, cultural, environmental agendas, and at the same time, influence and create ripples [to transform the wider finance world].”

To survive the pressures and stresses of being a CEO, he advises taking the approach of an elite athlete: “You have to compromise and look after your body and your mind and everything else… So I’m very conscious of what nurtures me, and that is time in nature.” This is when the beavers come in.

Bevis Watts talks to Tim West about:

• His career journey from environmentalist to finance boss
• How an impact investing bank can act as a pathfinder to drive change in mainstream finance
• How connecting to nature supports him throughout his work

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